Rose's Cantina

In the town of Enderby, British Columbia, the community got together to create a moving mural entitled No More Stolen Sisters. The mural was painted over a skateboard installation to commemorate the three women who went murdered and missing from this community last year. Deanna Wertz, Caitlin Potts, and my cousin Ashley Simpson all went missing from here, and from nearby Salmon Arm, within months of each other. These were not random disappearances, nor were they atypical in a province that is becoming known as much for its murdered women as it is for its breathtaking mountain scapes. The epidemic of lost women, mostly indigenous women and girls, has left a black mark on this nation known more for hockey and poutine than for violence. It has also raised serious concerns about the endemic racism that exists in many communities where First Nations people and other Canadians live side-by-side, or co-exist within sprawling rural/urban communities.  The alarm be...

On Saturday, Ashley Simpson's spirit was felt across the country as her family, friends and supporters participated in walks in tribute to the missing and murdered women of Canada. In B.C., her father, John Simpson, joined the families of Caitlin Potts and Deanna Wertz who also disappeared last year from Enderby and Salmon Arm. The walk, organized by Jody Leon, is meant to remember the murdered and missing indigenous women who have been the target of so much violence and neglect. Across the country, in St. Catharines, Ontario, there was a walk in Ashley's memory. Students and staff from Brock University joined in the walk. Ashley's cousin, Sarah McGean, Administrative Coordinator and Academic Advisor at Brock's Tecumseh Centre for Aboriginal Research and Education walked in her honor. Ashley's aunt, Julie Major also organized a walk in Marathon, Ontario. The walks were a success. There was only one low point. Tha...

The folks running the town of Enderby must have breathed a sigh of relief after I took down part of my blog yesterday, in which I reported that the town was taking down posters promoting a local walk for missing and murdered women. Some of the organizers of the walk had accused the local mayor, and town, of taking down the posters because they were afraid that they were bad for tourism -- that they were a buzzkill. One organizer even said she was hung up on by the mayor. I suggested the story reminded me of the plot of Jaws. Don't tell anybody there's a shark on the loose. And we all know what happened. I took down my post because I received a note from the town's Chief Admin Officer, who said he took a drive around town and noted that all the posters were still up including those which had been placed on city infrastructure spots including kiosks, light standards and more. "They have not been removed since they were posted yesterday," he noted. ...

While many Canadians will be preoccupied with settling into their cottages, or campsites, on this long weekend, others will be lacing up their running shoes to walk in the memory of their loves ones -- women who have gone missing and are presumed murdered. Members of my immediate family will be participating in walks from coast to coast. Some will be walking in St. Catharines/Niagara to remember my cousin Ashley Simpson who disappeared a year ago from her home in Salmon Arm. She is one of three women missing from the B.C. Interior towns of Salmon Arm and Enderby. Deanna Wertz and Caitlin Potts are also missing. Her father, John Simpson, will join in the B.C. walk . The organizers of walk have put the emphasis on aboriginal women because the majority of the missing come from the First Nations communities. But they have also taken John into their fold. Grief has no ethnicity, after all. The walk will cap off a frustrating time for John who dr...

Here's the latest update, courtesy of Global, B.C. on John's efforts to find Ashley. http://globalnews.ca/news/3453886/we-still-hope-father-of-missing-ashley-simpson-mounts-new-search-in-north-okanagan/

When Ashley Simpson went missing a year ago, the person who placed the call to the RCMP was her mom, Cindy Mcgean Simpson. That was the hardest day of Cindy's life. No, let me take that back. Everyday since has been the hardest day of her life, always wondering what happened to poor Ashley. If it's hard for John, who literally wakes up crying every single day, it must be excruciating for Cindy. I have watched her over the past year, and I've been amazed at her strength and resolve as she continues to prop up the rest of the family and carry on. This weekend, while John was out in Salmon Arm starting his search for his missing girl, Cindy was busy holding a garage sale to raise money for his quest. At Christmas, she went on a ship through the Welland Canal to cook, and help keep the lights on at home. We share the soul and heart of the Mother Bear protecting her cubs. We put aside our own pain to soothe the hearts of our children, and to put salve on every cut an...

John Simpson has a window, a couple of weeks, to find his beloved daughter who went missing a year ago from her home in Salmon Arm, B.C. He's dropped everything, left his loved ones behind, to make a last ditch effort to find her. But Mother Nature is not on his side. Like Moses, he has come up against a wall of water that is keeping him from the places he believes he might find her, or at least evidence of her. Frustration and anxiety are building. His tears are flowing faster than Margaret Falls, one of Ashley's favorite places. But there's no going back for this father. He's not giving up. Even if he doesn't find Ashley, John will never give up. John will continue to soldier on in his quest to act as an advocate for missing and murdered women in Canada. This afternoon, he will join in a town meeting where the people of Salmon Arm and nearby parts will be venting their frustration. Three women missing without a trace. This small community is reeling....

Salmon Arm peeps! Take note. A plea from John. https://www.facebook.com/100009723931925/videos/457428574591270

I saw a video today that ripped my heart apart. It was one of those we often see, the ones we see on Facebook. The video was shot by my cousin, Ashley Simpson; it was showing her dad goofing while they worked. "This is what I have to put up with at work," she quipped, in her breezy style. Today, that big goof has returned to Salmon Arm in hopes of finding his lovely girl. I have no words. http://www.saobserver.net/news/ashley-simpsons-father-returns-to-find-her/